When Alberto Del Rio left WWE after his second stint, he openly said that he only plans to wrestle 60 dates a year for the next 2 years and then retire. He also mentioned that he would be president of an MMA organisation. It was unclear which, but we now know the answer.
Combate Americas, a promotion directed towards the Latin American market with a majority roster of Latin American fighters made Alberto Del Rio the face of their promotion.
Combate Americas was founded in 2012 by UFC Co-founder Campbell McLanren, and it airs in English exclusively on the UFC Fight Pass. Del Rio is expected to make his first public appearance as President this Friday for the promotion’s first live event in New York City.
Del Rio said that he accepted the offer of the position the moment it came to him. His role is going to be focusing on all aspects of athlete/talent relations and also brand development.
Del Rio said that McLaren initially approached Del Rio a couple of years ago to fight for the organisation, but Del Rio said that it was too late in the game for him to do so. However, Del Rio is no stranger to MMA fighting, as he has had an MMA career in the past, under the name “Dos Caras Jr.”, where he had a record of 9-5.
His career spanned between 2001 and 2010.
Del Rio also said that he is looking at not only making great fighters but great entertainers as well. This is where his experience will be invaluable, as he has mastered showmanship in Sports Entertainment.
He cited Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey as examples of not only being great fighters but great showmen, which is the reason behind their success and their ability to draw so well.
He firmly believes that while it will be very difficult for Combate Americas to be bigger than UFC, he is very sure that the organisation will be the No. 2 MMA company in the world in less than two years.
It looks like this will be the career that he is going to transition into full-time in 2018 once he finishes his professional wrestling career. In that regard, Combate Americas is indeed lucky to have got in someone like Del Rio who has a lot of great connections and can help elevate the company to the next level.
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